Sword Art Online: New Game
by Red Dude98
Summary: With the power of Virtual Reality, we are able to travel to virtual worlds. But what happens when you aren't able to leave? 10,000 players including a teen named Ryuzo Kyoto log in to a game called Sword Art Online but soon learn that they are unable to logout, and dying in game causes you to die in the real world. Will Ryuzo survive? Or will he die trying?
1. Chapter 1: New World

Chapter 1: New Begginings

I've been a gamer for as long as I can remember. I used to have one of those old Nintendo DS's… Obsolete now, of course. In fact most technology is with the introduction of the "future" of gaming: VRMMO's. These kinds of games are every gamer's wet dream. Just imagine: you don't need a mouse or a keyboard. You can feel the wind, taste the food. It's not just first person, it's you. It's Virtual Reality.

**Ring ring. **My alarm beeped and I drifted out of my thoughts and into reality. I was staring into my reflection in my NerveGear VR helmet's visor. My short red hair stood out in the black of the screen, and my brown eyes fit in. I combed my hair with my fingers, spiking it up until I was satisfied.

**Ring ring**. I looked at my clock. It was nearly time! The first VRMMO game server was going to launch in a few minutes. It was the most anticipated game of 2022, this year. Sword Art Online. Only ten thousand copies were released, and it sold out in seconds. I was one of the lucky ones that got it. I sat on my bed and lay on my back. I put on the Virtual Reality helmet and allowed it to scan my face and gather data. This was it. The server was about to launch.

**Ring ring**. 5… 4… 3… 2… 1…

"Link Start!" I said, barely able to contain my excitement.

My vision was blurred and a flash of white replaced the view of my ceiling. For a second there was nothing. Nothing to hear, nothing to see, nothing to feel. Nothing. Then, I was falling. I could feel the wind rushing by and hear the whistling of it rush by my ears. It was like one of those dreams where you think you fell off a cliff or something, and your leg has one of those weird spasm attacks. Except this time, I didn't wake up. Colors were flying by, and I saw that my senses were getting synched up. A small menu popped up in front of me, asking about my information. My name is Ryuzo. I am 16. I am male.

"Enter game?" Said a clear female voice in my head. "Start!" I yelled, barely able to hear myself.

Then the falling slowed and I was set gently on my feet. The white that dominated my vision faded and I regained my vision. I was in a town plaza, and people were appearing all around. I was finally here… in the world of Sword Art Online!

* * *

I walked down the busy street, the players buying from the shops and talking to each other. Conversations and laughter could be heard everywhere, it was a bustling city. I stopped at a street vendor that was advertising weapons.

"Um… hi. I'd like to buy a sword please." I said.

The street vendor looked up and smiled. He was black and friendly looking, and completely bald. "Sure thing, friend! What will it be?" I looked at his weapon rack and a certain one caught my eye.

The blade was a deep crimson, and the hilt was black. It had a ruby encrusted on the bottom. My eyes widened a bit and I looked at the vendor with a look of determination.

"How much is this sword?" I asked. "50 col!" He replied.

"I'll take it." I said, and tapped the ok button floating in front of me with my finger. I accessed my inventory through the floating screen and equipped the sword. Suddenly there was a small red flash and my sword appeared in front of me. I caught it and waved it through the air with a grin.

"Careful with that thing!" The vendor exclaimed, ducking under his stand. "Oh, sorry about that. Thanks!" I replied, and started running toward the city exit. The vendor frowned and crossed his arms.

At the end of the street, I could see a huge archway leading out of the city. I could hear the birds chirping and water rushing. I ran even faster, my smile broadening as I got closer to the beauty outside. Suddenly a player stepped back from a stand, right in front of me. I ran right into him, knocking us to the ground.

"Ow…" He groaned, rubbing his head. He had black hair and green eyes, and wore a pair of thin, rimless glasses. "Hey, I'm really sorry about that." I said, getting back up and brushing myself off. "No, it's fine." He replied, picking up his glasses and putting them back on. I reached out my hand and helped him up. "I really am. I just got excited about seeing the whole game that I forgot to pay attention."

He smiled and reached out his arm for a handshake. "My name's Kai."

I smiled back and shook his hand. "I'm Ryuzo."

"Hey, I was about to head outside the city and gain experience from monsters. Maybe we can work together?" Kai said.

"Sure, " I replied.

He slid his finger through the air and his menu popped up. After poking the screen a few times, a message appeared in front of me.

**Kai Azusa has requested to be your friend. Do you accept?**

I looked at Kai, and he grinned good naturedly. I hit accept and the window closed. We nodded and headed out of the city.


	2. Chapter 2: Change of Plans

Chapter Two: Change of Plans

The sky seemed bluer than it did in the real world. In fact, the grass was greener and the clouds whiter. Not that I was complaining, it was a beautiful sight. Strange alien birds flew overhead, and floating islands with waterfalls pouring into the abyss below littered the sky.

"Pretty awesome, isn't it?" Kai asked, also looking up into the blue.

"Yeah!" I exclaimed. "Wait. You're talking about it like you've seen this before."

Kai grinned and adjusted his glasses. "Well, that's because I have."

I looked at him, puzzled. "But… that would mean you're a beta tester!"

"Yep."

"But there were only a thousand out of the ten thousand that were chosen to be beta testers!"

"That's right."

There was a short silence.

"Damn, you're lucky." I said. He laughed in response. "Yeah, you could say that. I learned quite a bit too. About fighting and how the game works, I mean."

I nodded. "Speaking of fighting, I haven't even used my sword yet. I could use some practice." I pulled out my katana for him to see.

Kai examined it and looked at me. "Yeah, that's a nice sword. Its stats are pretty high for a starter weapon in the first town. Of course there are a lot better weapons." He stated.

I smiled, and started walking down the dirt path we were on with Kai following behind. Soon enough there was a flash of blue and a wolf spawned. I quickly stepped back and got into an offensive position. "Looks like this is your first monster. Do you know how to use your weapon?" Kai asked.

"What's there to know? All I need to do is swing right?" I said with a grin, and charged at the wolf.

"Wait!" Kai yelled, but it was too late. I swung the sword down and the wolf jumped out of the way. It turned and bit my arm. I shook it off, but 1/4 of my HP was drained.

"Ryuzo, you're being too hasty. Plus your movements are slow and sluggish." Kai stated.

I grimaced and turned to him. "Well how am I supposed to do it, genius?" I yelled. Kai sighed and adjusted his glasses again. "Activate a sword skill. There isn't much to it, you just do it. It comes from the stomach. Once your sword changes color, release the power." He explained.

I nodded, and turned back to the wolf. A deep growl came from it, and drool dripped from its muzzle. It barked and lunged at me. For a second, time seemed to slow down. I took a deep breath, and felt a warmth emanate from inside. Suddenly my sword glowed green, and my speed doubled. I ran behind the wolf before it even touched the ground, and slashed through it several times, all with extreme speed. For a second the wolf hung in midair, and then it exploded into light. A screen popped up where the wolf had died, and I earned EXP.

"Nice!" Kai exclaimed, and gave me a high five. I grinned happily, and sheathed my sword.

"Well there's a lot more where that came from." Kai said, and gestured to the field next to us. Several wolves, boars, and other menacing creatures inhabited it.

"You've got that right." I replied, and we sprinted into the field.

* * *

After a few hours of hunting, I had advanced to level three. Of course, the amount of EXP needed to level up increases each level, so it wasn't that big of a deal. But my base stats had increased, so I was content. Kai and I were lying on our backs, looking at the sky as the sun began to set.

"It's really amazing." I said.

"Hm?" Kai turned his head toward me.

"It's amazing! That all this is a game!" I exclaimed, and stood up.

Kai laughed and nodded in agreement. "It really is. It feels so real, all of it. But it only feels real. No matter how real it feels, it will never be the same as the real world." He also stood up, and stretched. "Speaking of the real world, I have to go eat dinner with my family. It's been fun, but I think it's time I get off."

I smiled and gave a thumbs up. "Yeah, same with me." I slid my finger through the air and opened the main menu. I dragged it to the bottom, but the logout button wasn't there.

"What the hell?" Kai mumbled, proving I wasn't the only one with this problem.

"Did they move the logout button since the beta?" I asked.

"No… It should be in the same spot it always is in." Kai replied.

Suddenly, bells started chiming. "What's going on?" I exclaimed. We both glowed blue and without warning the sunset disappeared and we were in the city's plaza. "We were teleported?" Kai said. I looked around. It seemed as if everyone in the game was appearing here. I could barely hear myself think with the noise of everyone talking at once. But for some reason, most people became silent. I saw a girl looking up at the sky in horror.

I followed her gaze to see a red announcement message multiplying to cover the sky, blocking out the sun. Red goop began to poor out of the cracks, and it started forming together.

"What is that?" Kai mumbled.

The goop turned into a giant red cloak, and it started to look humanoid.

"Is- Is that a game master?" I stammered.

The humanoid figure raised its arms.

"Attention players, welcome to my game."


	3. Chapter 3: Trapped

Chapter 3: Trapped

Mass panic ensued. The massive mob of people were swarming, nobody knew what to do. The red hooded figure had explained to us that he was Kayaba Akihiko, the creator of the game. He told us that we were trapped here, and if we died in the game our VR helmet would fry our brain in real life. He wished us good luck, then simply disappeared into thin air. After a few seconds of shock, there was chaos. Screaming and anger and fear and shock. I stood in the middle of it, strangely calm.  
"Kai." I said.

"Wh- what?" He stammered back. "We need to get out of here, now." I responded.

He blinked and nodded. "Yeah, that's probably a good idea."  
Without hesitation, we took off. Out of the crowd, and out of the chaotic frenzy. I took a glance back at the people, and saw children crying, people screaming in agony, even fights breaking out.

With a shiver down my spine, I realized that many of these people wouldn't survive. Somehow, that made me even more determined to live.  
I followed Kai through the streets and alleys of the city, him being a beta-tester and all. The bluish white moonlight illuminated the stone paths. Eventually we came to a stop in a dark side street. By now it was night, and the sky was pitch black. The two of us caught our breath, and Kai slumped against the stone brick wall.

"This is… messed up…" He said in between breaths. Suddenly the whole situation hit me like a freight train. We were trapped like rats, in a deadly virtual world. My head felt light and all of a sudden I got dizzy.

"Whoa!" Kai exclaimed as I collapsed. I lay on the cold stone and stared at the sky. The stars were bright and the moon was shining, but it was all fake. I carefully got back up, and looked at Kai.

"Are we… ever going to get out?" I asked. He closed his eyes and sighed. "We have to. I have a family, I go to school, and I have a dream. I'm not giving all that up for some stupid game."

A cold breeze made me shudder.

"I also have a family. I can't just leave my little sister alone, and my parents will miss me." I replied with a nod.

"Then let's live." Kai stated, and began walking toward the city exit.

"What are you doing?" I growled. "We'll die if we go out there! It's suicide!"

"No. We'll die if we stay here. There's bound to be panic crazy people around; it's unsafe to be so close to the town center. If we go out there the most we'll have to worry about are a few weak wolves and boars, and we might gain some experience along the way." He explained.

I considered it for a second. He was completely right. That huge shock could have driven people insane, or at least make them unable to think straight. And I had seen the fights break out. Things could have easily escalated in the short time we were hiding.

"Ok, let's leave the city. We should head for the next town and get some rest in the inn." I suggested.

With that we sprinted off again, leaving the chaos behind us.


End file.
